Army Mulls Refocusing Chemical Defense Mission

By Global Security Newswire Staff

A forthcoming U.S. Army analysis will consider how to shift the service's chemical-weapon defense focus from "mopping up" deadly warfare agents to completely heading off their use, potentially paving the way for a comprehensive rethink of preparations against unconventional arms, Defense News reported on Thursday.

It was unclear when the Army Training and Doctrine Command would finish its assessment of methods used to educate, supply and field personnel in the 22 chemical battalions. The review began after the 2012 and 2013 "Unified Quest" exercises revealed problems tied to efforts to dispatch robust capabilities to fight weapons of mass destruction in other countries.

The service can already dispatch nuclear experts to support officers internationally, said Daniel Klippstein, who heads the Army Nuclear and Combating WMD Agency in Virginia.

He said the Army has more recently been boosting its emphasis on "trying to get on the left side of an event, to prevent the use of a weapon of mass destruction.”

This article was published in Global Security Newswire,
which is produced independently by National Journal Group under contract with the Nuclear Threat Initiative.
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